The Dragon Experiment
by Eos Forge
Summary: "My name is Hiccup. We're all in this together-trust me on that." In which Hiccup and the gang are mutants. No Fishlegs.
1. Prolouge

Hello there. I'm Hiccup, Hiccup the Intelligent. You may be wondering why I have such an odd name, but I'll tell you. I chose it myself, for what I thought was the best.

Yes, I always used to get the hiccups when I was young. Still do, but they come less frequently. There are a couple thing about me- me and my family- that most would consider unusual, even dangerous. But don't worry. We're no danger, at least when we feel that we're not being threated or under attack. But you don't have to take my word for it… you'll be here, with us, as we go through this wonderful circle of danger, family, friendship, flying, loyalty, and survival.

So there are five of us, just five:

-There's me, Hiccup the Intelligent. I'm the tallest of my Clan, being 6 feet tall, lithe but somewhat clumsy. I have straight and messy longish auburn hair that's braided in some parts, fair skin with freckles scattered across my nose, and emerald green eyes. I'm long-fingered and an artist, usually carrying a small journal with a pencil with me at all times, and a small dagger. They come in handy. I can sing pretty well, too, and talk my way out of any situation (I'm good with words). I'm also the leader of my Clan.

-There's Astrid the Brave, my best friend and second in command of the Clan. She's several inches shorter then I am, being 5'8, also lithe, but she's graceful. She has thick blond hair that ends at her shoulders and she always puts in a braid, fair skin that's smooth and soft, and blue eyes. She has a thing for spikes and she is in no way an artist of any type, but she can sing pretty well. Her weapon of choice is a double-sided axe that she can summon to her person at any time (don't ask, I'll tell later).

-There's Tuffnut the Acidic. She and I are friends, and she's my third. (I would never put the other two in charge- Snotlout and Ruffnut are so immature and act like children.) She's about the same height as Astrid, and she has long blond hair that's in two bunched up pigtails, lightly tanned skin with few blemishes, and sage green eyes, just like her twin, Ruffnut. She really, _really _loves explosives and has at least on bomb on her at all times. She can also cook. Tuffnut is motherly, however, and won't hesitate to comfort any one of us when we need it. Her weapon of choice is, of course, bombs, that she can summon (again, don't ask).

-There's Ruffnut the Mischievous. He and I are also friends, and honestly, I can't remember one moment in his life when he isn't smiling. He's Ruffnut's twin brother, with the same looks as her, except his hair is in dreadlocks that reach his shoulders, and his eyes are pale grey instead of green. Snotlout is his partner-in-crime and those two are best friends. He can play a pretty mean harmonica. He's immature, very immature. His weapon of choice is a sword (alright, I think you're getting the picture).

-Finally, there's Snotlout the Fiery. He and I are 1st cousins, surprisingly, and we're the only blood members of the Clan. He has straight and messy dark brown hair, golden brown eyes, and lightly tanned skin. He's muscled, heavily, unlike myself, and he's 5'10. He's the strongest of us all. He hits on Astrid, but one growl from me and he keeps his distance. His weapon of choice is a hammer (I don't think I need to say it).

So yeah, there's five of us in the Clan. Before you ask, no, you cannot join, because the Clan is a very exclusive…club… open to no one but us. _Why? _You might be asking. I'll give you an answer.

The five of us are mutants. Yes. Mutants, where we're 95% human and 5%... something. Not sure, but my bet is that it's a mix of some sort of reptile. But we're five percent reptile, and we have the whole shebang, wings and claws and scales and stuff. We also have a specific type of breath type.

I've got 16 foot black bat like wings and black scales around my spine. It's where my wings meet my back, and my pupils are split down the middle instead of circular. I can retract my claws by simple willpower. My breath type is electric- a main attack I use is plasma blast. A secondary breath attack is electric discharge, where I shock my enemies, although this takes a lot of power to use. I can fly the fastest, farthest, and longest out of everyone in my Clan.

Astrid has 14 foot multicolored, but mostly blue, bat like wings. Near the fingers, her wings curve into a sharp point, and she has silver blade claws on the ends of her wings. The ends of her wings have spikes on them that she can shoot outwards, making this an attack. She can unsheathe her claws and retract them with simple willpower, as well as coat them with ice. She has scales on the outside of her wings and a membrane on the inside. Her breath type is ice.

Tuffnut has 14 foot acid green bat like wings. She can fly pretty far, and her wings are thin but strong. She can fly for a while. Tuffnut can also coat her claws in poison and slash at her foes, making them drop. Her breath type is poison.

Ruffnut has 16 foot light blue bat like wings. He can fly fast, and his wings are like his sister's. Ruffnut can retract and unsheathe his claws at will, and his breath type is air. Out of the 5 of us, he is the best attacker in the air.

Snotlout has 18 foot dark red bat like wings. He can fly far, and his wings are 2 times thicker then the rest of ours are- just like him, his wings are muscled, and he has a high defensive level in battle, as well as a high attack level. His breath type is fire.

So now you know about us, what we are, and where we come from- oh, wait. I haven't told you that. Okay. So the five of us came from this place called the School. It's a pretty sick place where scientists do experiments on kids, making them not entirely human, and then _testing _on them and treating them like animals. We were five of those kids, and we escaped.

So _now _you know about us, what we are, and where we come from. Our story is pretty amazing, and unbelievable, and cool, but it's _real because it's true._

My name is Hiccup.

And this is my story.


	2. Chapter 1

**AN/: (I hate these things) Ok. I'm making Ruffnut the female twin and Tuff the male. I get confused by it too, so it's good to have pointers. Enjoy!**

My emerald green eyes open, and I know my pupils have slit because sunlight's in my eyes. But I can see perfectly. I stretch, rotating my shoulders, and put on my leg prosthetic. It makes up for the missing part of my leg, my shin down.

Yeah. More on that later.

I quickly take a shower and pull on some clothes: skinny black jeans that are set low on my hips, held up by a silver studded belt with a mini dragon head on the buckle, my dark green converse, a dark green t-shirt that hugs my frame and has the words _Strike Class _on it in black letters, and a black hoodie that's half zipped. It has fleece on the inside and it and my Strike Class t-shirt have wing slits. I tuck a small dagger onto my belt.

I slip a necklace on my neck, something Astrid gave me when I was 10 and we'd just escaped from the School. It's a necklace- really just a black cord, nothing special- and on the end of the necklace is a snake fang. I thumb the snake fang as I walk downstairs.

Here, in this secluded house, we're free. No doctors, no cages, no social workers knocking on our door… it's simple. If no one knows about us…

…we stay alive.

I go down to the kitchen and stretch. Tuffnut's already making breakfast, multiple batches of pancakes in multiple pans. I smile and walk behind her, giving her a hug from behind. "Hey Tuff," I whisper against her ear. Her aura is loving-loving for us and explosions and cooking.

Oh, and another thing:

I can read minds.

The whole thing is complicated, but here's the basics: I could sense people's auras since I was born. Because I can sense people's auras, I can read minds and know their feelings because of it.

"Hey Hiccup," she responds. _I wonder if I should put chocolate chips in his pancakes; but then, will Snotlout and Ruff want them too? _She thinks.

"No, Tuffnut, it's okay," I say. "You don't have to give me any special."

"Okay," Tuffnut responds. She smiles and flips a pancake and I sit down, taking a good look at her. Her blond waves are out instead of in their pigtails, and she's wearing a lime green dress that goes down to her knees and has a tan layer under that, and the tan layer's skirt peeks out from under the green layer. She's wearing dark tan to-the-knee boots with fur around the part where her ankle begins up, and she also has on a tan jacket with fleece on the inside. She also wears the same necklace as I; we all have it.

She feels relaxed and in her element. I relax myself and then feel another aura, this one full of courage- bravery, adventure, and everything in between. It's Astrid's aura. "Astrid's coming down," I say to Ruffnut, and she nods.

Seconds later, the blond girl enters the kitchen, fully dressed. Her hair is in its signature braid, and she's wearing a blue short sleeved striped form fitting t-shirt, a dark red skirt with spikes on it, and wears skull emblazoned shoulder pads. She has arm warmers: they go to her elbows and are dark red, like her skirt, and have a ring of fabric around her middle fingers. She wears boots like Ruffnut's.

"Hey," she says, and I nod. Astrid sits down next to me.

I breath in when Ruffnut sets our plates in front of us. I dig in and take a bite, and the flavor of breakfast exploded in my mouth. I moan quietly around the pancakes, and Ruff sits next to us.

Seconds later, I hear a _boom! _from upstairs. I jerk in my seat, and hear the laughter of Tuffnut and Snotlout in my head.

"Damn them," Ruffnut growls.

"I must agree," Astrid agrees.

1 minute later, the two remaining members of my Clan walk down the stairs, stumbling with laughter. I struggle not to laugh myself, and when a squeak escapes my lips, I dissolve into full blown laughter.

"Why are you laughing?" Ruffnut asks with a frown on her face.

"They blew up their room!" I gasp, clutching my stomach. Snotlout and Tuffnut frown and immediately stop laughing.

"What?" Snotlout asks. My laughter slowly dies down, and I look at him. He's wearing a dark red pullover hoodie, baggy black jeans,

"It was your room," I respond. Astrid and Ruffnut burst out laughing, and I laugh so hard tears leak out of my eyes.

"Ok," I say once we finish breakfast. "What does everyone want to do today?"

"Blowing up a mountain!" Tuffnut shouts, and Astrid winces; he's to her left, and yelled in her ear.

"_Hell no,_" I say flatly. "How about… picking strawberries? Ruffnut was thinking of making some sort of cake tonight, at around 7:30."

"That's a good idea!" Ruffnut agrees. "We can pick strawberries, and with those I can make 3 strawberry shortcakes."

"So let's go," I say, and they all nod. We finish our breakfast and go outside, down the mountain. One can only get to our house by the secret cliff. No… not really.

We reach the strawberry patch. The air is warm with the first real heat of May, and we have strawberry baskets with us. I brush my auburn hair out of my eyes; it goes down to my mid-back, and is straight and very messy. I have a few braids in it.

We pick strawberries in a comfortable silence. Astrid pushes a strawberry towards me, and I open my mouth, biting down on it. I chew and then swallow, smiling at her.

Ruffnut screams suddenly. Our heads whip around as we see Erasers drop from the sky. Instantly, everyone's auras turn panicky. Ruffnut's turns to thoughts of battle and getting away from the Erasers as fast as possible, and launching into the sky (she's the youngest out of us all, and hates battle). Tuffnut's thoughts turn to battle and protecting his sister, as well as beating Eraser ass. Snotlout turns to thoughts of knocking their lights out and protecting his own ass. Astrid's thoughts become full of a lust of revenge and an urge to protect her friends. My thoughts become with an instant urge to protect everyone, especially Ruffnut.

"_Yo!" _I shout in their minds, "_Spread out, get ready to fight! They have guns and they're not afraid to pop 'em. Ruffnut, they're after you, be prepared!"_

The four of us spread our wings out, crouched out on the ground and ready to fly. Ruffnut is slightly ahead of us, and the Erasers charge, but she's not fast enough. "Hiccup!" she yells, running towards me. Her hair flows, covering her back.

It's too late. The lead Eraser's hand closes on her and lifts her up by the back of her dress. Then he holds her in a loose choke hold. "_AIEEEEE!"_

Another Eraser stuffs her into a sack. That's when our minds catches up with our bodies after Tuffnut shrieks "Hiccup! Ruffnut!"

We get up and start to run towards them with our wings spread. I'm in the lead. "Tuffnut, no!" we shout. I jump and slam into an Eraser. "Humph!" I grunt.

I fly back and fly forward with Astrid. Seconds later, we're in the arms of the Erasers, being held back. "Let me go!" I growl. I then see an Eraser grasp Astrid's wing and put a shackle on it so she can't fly. "Astrid!" I shout.

"Hiccup, behind you!" Snotlout yells, but he's too late. I manage to twist myself out of the Eraser's grasp and start to run towards Astrid, but an Eraser kicks me in the gut, tripping me over and twisting my arm. I scream in pain.

"Hiccup!" the Clan shouts. They're being held back. The Eraser scoops me up so the tips of my wings touch the grassy ground, and then he tosses me to the side. My face touches the dirt.

"_AIEE!"_ Tuffnut screams. I buck my hips under the Eraser whose boot is on top of my back, between my wings, and preventing me from flying.

"_Let go of Tuffnut, you bastard!" _I scream. I buck my hips backwards again and manage to free myself from the Eraser. I brace myself on my hands and the balls of my feet, my Converse bending to accommodate to the shift change. Before I can start running, the same Eraser slams a boot into my stomach. I scream in pain and roll over on my side, panting and coughing up blood.

I mentally catalogue my injuries. A dislocated shoulder, three claw marks across my face that has a steady stream of blood flowing through it, and a dislocated wing bone in one of my wing fingers that's preventing me from flying.

It's official. My friends are incapacitated, _I'm _incapacitated, Ruffnut is captured…

We're screwed.

"Hiccup the Intelligent. Good to see you again, brother," A smooth voice says, and I look up at the completely human Eraser who's speaking to me. He has a hooked and pointed nose, slanted, dark eyes, and smooth eyebrows. He has dark brown hair and eyes. Something about him is familiar, but I can't tell what. I pick up on my friend's panicked thoughts as they make themselves known.

_That's impossible! _Snotlout thinks. _It can't be true, it just can't be…_

_Hiccup! _Ruffnut thinks, his wings pinned by two Erasers who had each taken one wing. _We have to help you, but who's that? He looks familiar…_

_Hiccup! It's Dagur! _Astrid screams in my mind.

"_No,"_ I respond mentally, _"it's not him, it can't be."_

"You look like crap. You always acted so much better then everyone else…"

_Do I know him? _I think to myself.

"…so I have to admit this cheers me up."

I manage to pop the finger on my wing back into place and stand up, my prosthetic nearly giving out. I can feel how damaged it is. But I can replace it. I have another one at home.

If we get home.

"W-who are you?" I stutter, my breath coming out in pants. He grins, showing sharp canine, feral teeth dripping with wolf drool.

"You don't recognize me?" he asks, curling his left hand- it's got sharp claws on the ends- into a partial fist, leaving his fingers open. My left hand grips my right shoulder. "I guess I've grown some."

The realization that Astrid was right shocks me to my core. "Alvin's son… Dagur?! But… you're only seven years old?!" I say.

Dagur grins evilly. Then he takes a few running steps, bringing his foot around and kicking me in the stomach so quickly I'm unprepared. I go skidding to the ground, one of my wings underneath me.

I cough up some more blood, then let out a pained moan. "Hiccup!" my friends shout.

He kicks my injured shoulder. A scream erupts from my own mouth and I feel my friends' worried, scared, and fearful thoughts and feelings come crashing down on me.

Dagur's boot rushes towards my head from my side vision. That's when I know that everything's going to hell…

And everything goes black.


	3. Chapter 2

**AN: (I really hate these things…) Ok. I looked it up. Ruffnut is the female twin and Tuffnut is the male twin. Also, in this Tuffnut is the same dragon then Ruffnut is-he's a Hideous Zippleback, but his wings are light blue and his breath type is air. Also, this will follow the book…sorta. There will be several changes, but I won't tell what it is.**

* * *

_3__rd__ Person POV : __Hiccup_

…_Hic…_

…_he Scho…_

…_The School…_

…_Ruffnut…_

…_wake UP, Hiccup!_

Hiccup's emerald green eyes slowly opened. A red eyelash god in his eye and he blinked it away, and then slowly sat up. He moaned as he rubbed his head.

"Everyone okay?" Hiccup asked.

"I'm up, Hiccup," Snotlout said, all joy gone from his voice.

"So am I," Tuffnut replied. Astrid was next to Hiccup, and offered him a hand. His legs wobbled as he got up, and he dropped Astrid's hand a moment later.

"It feels like I got hit by a truck," Hiccup moaned. "Where's Ruffnut?"

Astrid looked away. "Gone," She said.

"They took her," Hiccup whispered, tears welling in his eyes. "They took her! Why didn't you do anything, Astrid? Why didn't you…" he dissolved into tears, leaning his head on Astrid's shoulder. As his body wracked with silent sobs, Astrid held him with silent tears leaking down his face as well.

Tuffnut cocked his head. A signal for them to start listening. "There! I can hear their engine!"

Hiccup lifted his head from Astrid's shoulder and rubbed his eyes. "Guys, c'mon," he said. The four of them ran stiffly towards a cliff. Below them was an old unused logging road. And on that logging road, Hiccup could clearly see, there was a Humvee. In that Humvee was 4 auras Hiccup could sense: three Erasers and one very frightened Ruffnut.

"_Ruffnut, it's me, Hiccup," _he thought at her. "_Blow it up."_

_Okay, _Tuffnut responded. Hiccup gulped and then he heard several panicked thoughts.

_Bomb!_

_Get out of the car!_

_What the fuc-_

_BOOM! _The explosion was so strong Hiccup's hoodie unzipped the rest of the way and his hair was blown back. Tuffnut, Hiccup, and Astrid were knocked over, with Snotlout being the exception-he was strong enough not to be knocked off his feet.

The three picked themselves up and Hiccup backed up. The remaining three made a semi circle as Hiccup ran towards the edge, throwing himself over the cliff.

He snapped out his wings.

And he began to fly.

Hiccup glanced behind him. Astrid had jumped out, then Tuffnut, and finally Snotlout. Hiccup hovered in place for a moment as the other three surrounded him. Ruffnut was being brought to… to…

… a chopper?

"A chopper, guys," Hiccup said. He had been a bit dazed by the explosion, being the closest out of the four to it. "West."

The four mutants flew to the chopper. It already had a head start, as it was 200 metres away. Hiccup started to pull ahead of his friends as he flew, and Astrid was right behind him.

They stopped for a moment and were flying several metres below the chopper when it happened: an Eraser stuck a paw out and threw a grenade. "Astrid, look out!" Hiccup yelled.

Astrid turned toward him just as the grenade exploded. The blond girl screamed as she was thrown down, and Hiccup dropped and shifted, trying to get to her. Snotlout saw this and flew upwards, trying to catch Astrid as well. It worked.

Hiccup stopped flying, pulling himself up before he hit them. "Go get her," his cousin whispered. Hiccup nodded and flew upwards.

"Take care of Astrid, Snotlout!" he said, and soared upwards, flying as fast as he could. He was just beginning to reach speeds of 130 miles per hour and caught up with the chopper in seconds.

He grasped the landing skid and let his wings droop. The downdraft was enough to snap his wings in half. He hooked an arm around it and then heard the _click!_

"Let me tell you a secret, old pal, brother of mine," Dagur said, holding a handgun. "You've got it all wrong. _We're the good guys!_"

"Ruffnut," Hiccup whispered, near tears. Dagur's finger was on the trigger. Hiccup knew that he would do it. And dead, he'd be no use to anyone.

His heart breaking, Hiccup let go, just as Ruffnut's head broke free of the sack. She was knocked unconscious a moment later by Dagur.

Ruffnut was flying away towards her death.

And things much worst then that.

* * *

"No use discussing this," Hiccup said. "We're way outnumbered. You guys are my army, _the _army, and we're gonna get Ruffnut back, one way or another."

"How?" Astrid said, speaking up for the first time. She had been completely silent on the flight home. "We're outnumbered. They had a chopper-"

"-and guns-" Tuffnut said

"-and they're mutants, for Odin's sake," Snotlout said.

"_We're _mutants," Hiccup pointed out. _"We'll fly there. _They don't have flight. _WE do!"_

"Good point," Snotlout said, "But who will hold down the fort?"

"No one," Hiccup argued, "they knew we're here, they'd seen us in the area."

"So then we're _all _going?" Astrid asked. "Shouldn't one of us stay here?"

"_No,"_ Hiccup protested, looking at each of them. "We're all going. I need all of you, with me, on this."

"But-" Tuffnut protested.

"No buts, I don't want to hear it." Hiccup said. "Now…" he added, walking away, "...everyone get your gear together."

* * *

"So, is everyone clear on Plan B?" Hiccup asked, over the roar of the wind. They were headed into the sun, south-southwest. They were going 90 miles an hour, with Hiccup being the exception: he was going 105 miles an hour.

"Yep," Snotlout said.

"Sure," Tuffnut said.

"Yes," Astrid answered. "How are you flying so fast?"

"Whatever reptile I was merged with lets me fly faster then the rest of you!" Hiccup said, smiling, and flapped his wings. The others flapped more to catch up with him.

"We met up at the northmost point of Lake Mead," she said.

"Good," Hiccup said, "and where's the School?"

"Off the edge of Salton City, California, in the Salton Lake," Snotlout answered. Hiccup smiled and nodded. "And Astrid is the only one who can get under."

"Yeah, that's true," Astrid said warily.

They had been flying for a while now. "Hiccup, look!" Tuffnut said, and the auburn haired boy looked down.

"It's a town," Hiccup said.

"According to the map, it's Berk, Arizona," Astrid spoke up.

"Can we eat there?" Snotlout asked.

"No, we have to keep going," Hiccup said. That's when he spotted something below. A woman, getting assaulted by three man. She had brown hair and emerald green eyes.

He made one of his famous snap decisions. "I'm going down there," he said.

"No," Astrid said. Hiccup's eyes shut for a moment and he clenched his teeth, keening in his throat.

"Meet me at the northwest point of Lake Mead," Hiccup said. "It'll take two seconds. I'll catch up with you guys before you reach Lake Mead." He went to fly down.

_Hiccup! _Astrid shouted in her mind.

"_If anything happens, meet me at Lake Mead!" _Hiccup shouted in their minds, and flew down, landing to where the woman was backed up against a platform.

He landed on the platform and watched his friends fly away. He landed on the platform's top and looked over the edge, tucking his wings in, and listened.

This woman's aura was filled with kindness. Right now she was frightened.

"I told you not to tell anyone about my little situation with Johan," the ringleader man was yelling. "It was none of your business. I had to teach him a lesson."

The woman's eyes narrowed. _If only I had a syringe full of numbing fluid, _she thought.

He jumped down and landed on his feet smoothly. He then ran into the forest, ran a semi circle in under then 30 seconds, and stepped out from the tree line. The woman's eyes widened in surprise. _"Shh, it's okay. I know they has guns. I'm gonna get you out of here."_

_Are you in my head? _The woman thought.

"_Yes," _Hiccup answered, "_and I know how deal with them. Start running when I tell you." _The woman nodded.

It was enough. The men's heads whipped around. _Just a kid, I should probably shoot him, so there's no witnesses, _the ringleader guy thought, and Hiccup picked the thought up.

"So, Val, what have you got to say for yourself?" the ringleader man asked. "Is there any lesson I shouldn't teach you a lesson, too?"

"Three guys against one teen," Hiccup said, "that seems about even."

_Get out of here! _The women thought.

Hiccup smirked. "_Oh, you have no idea what I can do."_

"Shut up, boy," one of the men snapped. "You better get out of here if you want to know what's good for you." _What kind of man would have their hair long?_

Mistake number one.

"Can't," Hiccup said, walking to stand next to the woman named Val. She looked at him in alarm. "I think kicking your asses would be good for me."

They laughed. Mistake number two.

"Grab smartass," said the head guy.

Mistake number three.

"Three strikes, you're out," Hiccup said, and the guy charged. Hiccup ran to meet him. He jumped and thrust his leg forward, pulling a roundhouse kick right into the head guy's chest. Hiccup heard three ribs snap, and the guy choked, coughing up blood, and fell backwards. The remaining two rushed him at once. Hiccup was able to dodge all their attacks and nailed a kick right to the top of one's head. The blood started flowing from his scalp.

Hiccup saw back and saw Val looking afraid, not of him. "_Go!" _Hiccup urged, and she nodded, racing into the forest, leaving a little cloud of read dust behind her.

The men were a mess. But they staggered to their feet, and one of them held a gun, turning the safety off. "You're gonna be so sorry," the leader promised, spitting blood on the ground.

"Bet I won't," Hiccup said. Then he turned and raced away as fast as he could. Of course, like he had known they did. One of them fired the gun and missed him by centimeters. Hiccup ducked behind a tree.

"Spread out!" the ringleader ordered, and the two started to look for him.

The ground that Hiccup was standing on crumbled. Hiccup bit his lip as he tumbled down the slope and dislocated his shoulder again. _Oh, come on,_ he thought. _Pain… you gotta love it._

Hiccup landed on his feet and trotted a couple steps to keep from faceplanting. The guy heard this, and Hiccup saw him appear over the edge of the cliff. Hiccup twisted as he fired, and the shot hit his dislocated shoulder. "Got him, Fred!" the guy shouted.

Hiccup took the opportunity to race away. The shot had nicked his wing.

He was screwed.

* * *

Oh man. This was not the best day he ever had. His shoulder was dislocated and bleeding heavily, as were his batish wings. He knew he was screwed. It was dark, he was hungry, he was injured, and oh, _yeah- _it has started raining, so he was also freezing.

"C'mon, Toothless. Make it quick," said a familiar voice, and the boy's eyes widened. It was Val. She was standing in her backyard, holding an umbrella over her head. In the yard was a black retriever.

Hiccup quickly tucked his wings in to his hoodie and zipped it up. A moment later he bit his lip to hold in the moan of pain, but it half escaped as he clutched his shoulder. Val glanced over, and called, "Who's there?"

_I wonder if it's that kid from before. He saved my life, _the woman thought.

"_Yes, it's me, Va,l" _Hiccup thought, stepping out from the tree line. The woman relaxed.

"Oh, it's you. Thanks for earlier," Val said, walking over to him. Hiccup stepped into the light and she gasped. "You were shot!"

"Yeah," Hiccup said, as she trotted over. The 6 foot boy shrugged. She was quite tall, about 5'10, but the guys he had faced today were like a combination of Snotlout and himself, and they were well over 6'5. Their auras had been dark and dangerous and full of a lust to take Val for themselves. "I'm fine don't worry about- ah-"

Hiccup moaned and grit his teeth against the pain, closing his eyes. Val noted that his breathing began labored. "Let's get you inside," she said, and Hiccup opened his eyes as she walked inside.

After several seconds, Hiccup followed her inside her house, the dog following him. "Toothless, do me a favor and get my medical kit," Val said, showing Hiccup to a chair. His mouth dry, Hiccup sent a thought at her with his powers.

"_Are you sure-?" _He asked, and Val nodded, brushing the hair out of his eyes and tying it into a ponytail. Some of the braids in his hair hung down, and Val brushed the hair out of his eyes. _What a beautiful boy, why did he have to get hurt this way? _Val thought.

Hiccup blushed as the comment, and the dog returned with the medical kit tucked between the jaws. "Thanks, buddy," Val said, patting him on the head. "Follow me," she said to Hiccup, and the auburn haired youth nodded, getting up off the couch. He followed Val to the bathroom and he sat on the edge of the tub. There was something she was hiding, he was sure of it. "What's your name?"

"Hiccup," He said.

Hiccup suddenly raised his head. He had sensed someone else coming in the house. "Stoick?" Val asked.

"Yes, Valka?" the man answered. Hiccup closed his eyes and focused on the man's aura. It was filled with love, yet a lingering frustration.

"Drop everything and get a cup of orange juice from the kitchen. Make it large," she said, opening the medical kit and taking out a pair of surgical scissors. Hiccup was already pulling off his hoodie, and by the time she turned around, Hiccup had his shirt hallway off.

The woman helped the boy with the rest of his shirt, tossing it aside, and then stared at his wings. "This-this is…" she trailed off.

Her husband appeared in the doorway, with the big glass of orange juice. He nearly dropped it as he stared at Hiccup. "What's that on your back?" he asked.

Hiccup's breathing shallowed out further. This was it, the moment of truth.

"It's a…wing," he whispered. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Stoick frown. "My, um, wing. It…got hurt too."

He extended his wings until they were above his head, the black bat wings nearly knocking into the walls. Stoick's eyes widened. "I thought…"

…_that Valka was the only one. That she __was the only one._

Hiccup looked up sharply. "What did you say?" he whispered.

"That Valka and I are regular humans," Stoick said.

Hiccup's eyes narrowed further. "Not according to your thoughts, she's not," he said. Stoick sighed through his nose.

"Fine. She's a mutant as well." Stoick said, and nodded at his wife. Val unfolded her wings. They were a light orange, and had darker orange blade claws on the ends.

"So you're a mutant as well," Hiccup said, relaxing. Stoick nodded and passed him the cup of orange juice, which he drank down, and manage to gasp out, "Thanks," when he was done. Stoick took the cup back and Val looked at Hiccup.

"When was the last time you had a tetanus shot?" Val asked.

"Um, never?"

"Okay. I can take care of that too."


	4. Chapter 3

**AN: (I really, really hate these things) Starting today, Monday (I wrote this on the 17th), it's officially the Week of The Dragon! I'll try to update but be forewarned. It's only the stories in the How To Train Your Dragon fanfics. It's Week Of The Dragon, after all.**

I slowly awake. As soon as I awake, I feel sore. I feel like death. I can tell, however, that I'm healing rapidly; the wound was almost healed. I sit up slowly and stretch, my wings folded partially in. I stretch my wings out and wince as pain shoots up my left wing. It hurts like hell.

I'm dressed in a large oversized t-shirt that's loose on my body. It had large wing slits in the back, and loose lounge pants that hangs low on my hips. It's like the hospital clothing that I and the rest of my Clan had worn when we were trapped in the School… I shiver at the memory and wrap my arms around myself.

I sense two unfamiliar auras outside the door and my claws unsheathe. _Run! _my mind screams at me, _flee!_

The door opens. It's Val, and Toothless. "Oh. It's just you," I say. I fall back on the pillow, then sit up with a "Gah…" as my back flares in pain.

That bullet has taken more toll on me and my wing then I thought. No flying. Nada.

"Relax," Val urges, walking over to me and sitting on the bed. "Give me your back and lay down, and take off your shirt," she adds, revealing a jar of Vicks from behind her back. I obey, taking off my shirt and laying on my stomach.

I hiss at a feather light touch from Val's finger. "Ah…"

"Your muscles are bunched up," she says. She runs another finger down my spine and I shiver lightly, half moaning-half sighing with relief as she starts to slowly massage my back. _He needed this,_ Val thinks, and moved her fingers, coated with Vicks, further up my spine, where there are indents for tucking my wings in.

I suck in a breath. She soothes me, and starts to press the heel of her hands into my back. My mouth opens in an 'O' and I arch into the touch. "_Ah… right there…" _I moan. It was probably telepathically, because she pauses before continuing.

Val smiles mischievously and keeps on massaging my back, and the place where my wings meet my back. I arch more into the touch and stretch out my leg and my fingers. It's good… it feels good. She was right: I do need a massage.

I sigh when it's over. All of the kinks have been worked out, and my wing doesn't even hurt anymore. "C'mon down for breakfast," she urges me, tying up her waist long hair into a long braid. Her hair's slightly wavy, unlike mine, which goes down to my midback, between my wings, and has only a couple braids in it. It's awfully messy, and we both have auburn hair.

I follow Val downstairs. Another dog joins us at the foot of the stairs-Cloudjumper, according to Val's memories- and walks with us into the kitchen. I run a hand through my hair and tuck my wings around me loosely as I sit in my chair. Val sets a plate of chocolate pancakes in front of me. The scent makes my mouth water.

"Can I get some, please?"

I jerk in my seat and look down. Toothless is there.

The dog. He just talked. I blink.

"Don't bother him, pup, he's still recovering," Cloudjumper answers. He's a Lab with reddish fur. I look closer and see that they're both winged, with feathers to match their fur.

"You guys can talk?" I ask them.

"Yes, we can, pup," Cloudjumper answers. I take a glimpse into the elder dog's mind and see his past. He shakes his head, but I've already gotten all the info I need.

"You were an experiment," I say, "just like we were."

"Yeah," Toothless says uneasily, shifting around, "I…don't like to talk about it much. I do like being able to talk, having wings, and being able to fly, though," he adds, "flying is so much fun!"

I smile and look at my own black wings. "Tell me about it."

Cloudjumper nods, and a piece of pancake drops on the floor. Before I can grab it, Toothless jets forward. Time suddenly seems to slow down, and Toothless' speed is reduced to 3 times less then what it was. Val grabs the piece of pancake-her speed and reaction times are normal-and tosses it into the garbage, where it flies through the air _slowly_ and goes it. By the time Toothless has started to skid into a halt, time seems to go back to normal.

I lurch forward, and Toothless' nose is about an inch from the table. I glance at Val as I finish my breakfast. "What was _that?" _I ask in surprise.

She grins. "I slowed down time. That's my special skill; all mutants have it, and get it by the time they're twenty. So," she adds, "wanna go for a flight?"

"Sure," I say, and sensing Toothless' eagerness at the prospect of a flight, I add "We'll all go."

Five minutes later, we're flying high in the sky. I just surpass a thousand feet, and Val, Toothless, and Cloudjumper follow me. I laugh and fly higher.

And that's when I hear it. A chopper. My eyes widen. _"Shh… I hear a chopper," _I say, and they reach me. Val cocks her head.

_I hear it too, _she says. _Let's go back to the house. _I nod, making sure to project her thoughts to Toothless and Cloudjumper, and both dogs nod. I go down, but then the chopper flies below me and I skid to a halt, pulling myself up.

"Well, well," Dagur says with a feral grin, "look who it is."

"I sure am glad to see your hide again," I say sarcastically. I make to fly downwards, but a clawed hand makes its way around my neck; and all goes black.

The last thing I see is Val's, Toothless', and Cloudjumper's expressions of disbelief.

* * *

"I'm getting worried," Astrid said. The boys nodded and looked out over Lake Mead. "He should have been back by now. It's not like Hiccup to get grounded."

"I think we should look for him," Snotlout agreed, standing up. Astrid put out the fire with a wave of her hand. Tuffnut stood up as well, his dreadlocked hair swinging. One by one, they threw themselves over the edge of the cliff and opened their wings wide.

And they began to fly to Berk.


	5. Chapter 4

I slowly awake. My entire body tingles; a sign of soreness. Rather then opening my eyes, I rely on my other senses to try and figure out where I am. I smell chemicals. I hear distant screams. I feel needles. I taste antiseptic. I see…

My eyes fly open.

I'm trapped in a cage, all of my clothes still on.

I'm back in the School.

I curl into a tiny ball, my breathing shallow. My eyes sting with tears and a few go down my face as I tremble hard. Out of all of my family, I have the worst memories of the School… both mine and other's memories. Being an aura seeker (as Astrid called me one time and on extension, a mind reader), I would automatically read and take other people's memories, and the victim's memories get buried in the back of their minds. And I would get the full brunt.

I think it's better. My team shouldn't suffer the most…but should _I_ really suffer the most?

I start to silently sob again as I feel the emotions of helplessness, despair, depression, and wishes of death from all around me.

"Hiccup?" A voice whispers. My eyes widen and I turn towards her.

"At least we got a large crate," Tuffnut says from the back of the crate. She's in a hospital gown, a short one, and her wings are exposed. I look at her, trembling all over.

And suddenly we're clinging to each other, and she's stroking my hair as I sob into her shoulder. She presses kisses all over-just like when we were kids- and since she's the third youngest I have to be taking care of her instead of the other way around, but _oh, _it's a relief to just crumble and not care anymore.

It's obvious to me now that Valka betrayed me. This is it… I'm done. I'm done caring. I don't care what they do to me anymore…

…I just want this hell to end. The sooner I'm dead, the better.

I must have been whispering this into Tuffnut's shoulder, because she pulls back from the hug with a shocked look on her face. "Hiccup!" she astonishes me, "don't give up! I haven't… we got out of here once and we can do it again. You just gotta believe. Not just in yourself, but in others, too. You've been projecting your thoughts and feelings outwards. And I'm sure Val wouldn't betray you," she adds, seeing my face, "she's too nice for that."

Before I know it I'm sobbing into her chest again, and Tuffnut just holds me and presses kisses into my hair, while all the while I just wonder why I had to be born this way.

* * *

Val flew in the direction of the School, with Toothless and Cloudjumper following. They were flying well above the clouds; it has started to rain. They had followed the chopper, and were nearly there. They were mostly silent, and Val was flying with the dogs on either side of her. But then the German Shepard, Toothless, perked up intently, his head swiveling slightly to the right. "I hear something."

"The pup is right," Cloudjumper agreed, flying underneath Val and untucking his feathered wings when he started flying under Toothless. "It sounds like… wings. Birds, maybe?"

Val nodded. "That's not important. We have to find Hiccup, and get him."

Val frowned as she heard a strange whooshing sound and was started when someone dropped on her. "What the- get off me!" Val yelled. She spotted a pinetree and landed on a branch, but reared back her head as a blond girl with light blue eyes reared back to punch her face.

"How do you know Hiccup?!" The girl screamed.

Val said in a rush, "I helped him heal and he got taken by the School!"

The girl frowned and narrowed her eyes further, her fist still back. "How did you help him?" she inquired. "And what did you mean by 'get him'?"

"He got taken by Erasers in a chopper when we were out for a test flight," Val answered. Her eyes narrowed. "And how would you know?"

"He's my leader," she said. "My name is Astrid."

"Valka," Val answered, and the girl started flying again. "Snotlout, Ruffnut! Let's go!" she said, flying to two boys. Val beckoned Toothless and Cloudjumper over, and they flew in the direction of their dreaded past.

* * *

Hiccup was curled around Tuffnut, exhausted. He was covered in his own blood and sweat, and now his hair was matted and dirty. Tuffnut was in the same condition.

Suddenly there was a low _thud, _and Astrid broke through the glass celing. Hiccup's eyes widened and he whispered, "Astrid."

"Hiccup, Tuffnut!" Astrid whispered, running towards them and unlatching their cage. Hiccup crawled towards her and started running on both of his legs, throwimg his arms around Astrid's neck and sinking into her. Astrid knew that Hiccup needed emotional support… he was a great leader, but slightly unstable, because his feelings changed like night and day. Astrid felt Hiccup tremble and rubbed his back, between his wings, and felt Hiccup's tears on her shoulder pad.

"Let's get out of here and head someplace else," Hiccup breathed, and Astrid simply nodded as she embraced Tuffnut. The three began to make their way out the same way Astrid had come in, and got out without a hitch.

The three reached the roof and Hiccup gave Tuffnut a hands up. Just as they were about to run to the end and break the glass, when they were surrounded by Erasers. Hiccup skid to a stop.

"Now, now," Dagur said with fake sweetness in his voice, "where do you think you're going?"

Hiccup feinted back and Dagur swiped forward. Hiccup tripped him and then put his middle and index fingers together, blasting Dagur back with a bolt of lightning. The other Erasers raised their hackles. Tuffnut coated her claws in poison and slashed the Erasers with it. Astrid launched an ice spear at the other two Erasers; and they went down, the ice coated with their blood. All of them were dead.

"Submarine," Hiccup said. The girls followed him, seeming to have regained their composure. They went into the submarine and Hiccup slipped into the pilot's seat. "No, I don't know how to work this thing," he said, "but I can sure as hell try."

Hiccup pressed a few random buttons. The girls tried not to lose him and suddenly the machine was lurking, breaking the force field that housed the School and causing water to flood into the compartment. From the sub's windows, they could see the mutants swimming to safety.

Hiccup successfully maneuvered the sub out of the lake, where Astrid broke the surface of the ice with her powers. They rose to the surface, and Hiccup popped the hatch open, jumping out and landing on his feet by the shore. He saw Ruffnut, Snotlout, Toothless, Cloudjumper, and…

…Val.


	6. Chapter 5

**A/N: For the purpose of this story, **_**Tuffnut is the female twin **_**and **_**Ruffnut is the male twin. **_**If you're not sure about it, look it up on the HTTYD wiki.**

Hiccup's POV

"What…do you want?" I snarl, and I clench my fist, my index and middle fingers extended, ready to fire off a lightning bolt. I'm not willing to kill her, just stun her or maybe even paralyze her. My wings are twitching, and ready to spread, just in case it's U and A, the small, barely visible smooth scales on the outside of my wings lifting a bit. I can feel them as clearly as I feel the wind blowing through my midback length hair.

I can also feel the emotions of those around me. Astrid is panicking slightly, and she's screaming in her mind _Don't do it, she helped us find you! _Both the twins are panicked; both are wondering whether they should disable her or U &amp; A. Snotlout is hoping to set her on fire, because he never really trusted her anyways. Toothless is panicking, his heart beating, while Cloudjumper is thinking logically like I normally do, believing he must separate the two of us, Val and I.

I'm busy wondering whether or not I can tear her _and _Stoick apart, because that bastard called them, he called Dagur and the rest of the people at the School!

"I helped you out of the School for a reason, Harold," Valka says. My eyes widen a fraction and I hear my heart in my ears when I hear the name. _Harold._

_Mom?_ I whisper into her mind.

She meets my eyes, emerald green against emerald green, her long wavy glossy brown hair going the same way mine is. _Yes, _she whispers in her mind.

There is a second when we are staring at each other. It's so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Then suddenly I am rushing past her, snapping my wings open, and flying away, flapping hard, up, up, into the clouds. I almost laugh with the joy of flying, but I am too upset to laugh. Instead, I want to cry, but a million questions run through my head, too many to ask, comprehend, and count. I surpass the clouds and start to sob.

_Hiccup! _Astrid screams in her mind.

_Astrid, I know what you're thinking, DON'T YOU DARE FLY AFTER ME. GO TO HER HOUSE, TAKE THE REST OF THE CLAN, _I say in her mind.

_But- _Astrid begins to protest.

_NO! _I scream in her mind, and I feel her flinch. _Do NOT protest, Astrid, I need some time along. Go to Val's house, __**that is an **__**ORDER.**_

_Alright, _Astrid finally agrees.

My lightning lights the sky that night.

* * *

When I get back to Val's house in a blind state – I flew there without truly noticing - I land, walk in, and hone my thoughts and concentration in on Val. I don't have to concentrate at all to read minds and feel others' emotions, but to single out someone else and focus on someone else's mind, blocking out everyone else, requires con-centration. _Val, we need to talk, now, _I tell her in my mind.

I keep a lot of secrets, even from my Clan, even from Astrid. We go behind the house, and I lean against the wall.

"Why?" I ask.

She explains everything to me. How she was pregnant when they captured her again, how she went into labor and they had to perform an emergency C-section, how they let her go in England of all places, how, during that time she was away from the states, they brainwashed Stoick into believing his wife was dead, and to make him call them in case he ran across Hiccup again. But before all that, after Hiccup was born and Val was dumped in England, they merged his DNA with that of a Scottish Highland bull.

By the end of it we're both crying, and that's when a light bulb goes off in my head. "Of course!" I say, pulling away from her. V- Mom looks at me in confusion.

"What?" Mom says, looking at me in confusion.

"He was brainwashed, and bulls rely on their horns as their main weapon, their way for food, everything. So, you probably got the details wrong… they might've mutated him first, and then brainwashed him, because their head can be accessed through their horns. The only way to reverse the brainwashing is by me using my mind reading."

"Honey, you're a genius," Val breathed, pushing herself up on her toes and kissing the top of my head. I smile and hug her, gripping her neck gently.

I smile. I already know my real name: Harold Horrendous Haddock the Third. I have a _family._

When I sense someone stepping out of the woods, I gasp and pull Val out of the way just as Stoick fires a gun at my head.

I breath and summon my daggers. They're made of electricity. "Come out, mutant," Stoick said, "you can't hide forever!" This was accompanied by a laugh.

The rest of the Clan hear it, and are chilled to the bone. They rush outside, summoning their weapons. "Mom, go to the roof," I say. Val pecks me on the cheek, unfurls her wings, and swoops up with one flap.

"Hiccup," Astrid says.

"Shhh," I say, holding a finger up, and then I dart out from behind my cover, throwing a dagger at one of my father's horns. Stoick moves at the last moment, making the dagger land in his arm. He yanks it out and puts pressure on the handle, making the electricity vanish.

_What the hell? _I thought. "Oh come on," I groan, my nasally voice filling the outside. I put my hands together and say "_Plasma Blast!"_

My electricity goes to Stoick's chest. The man stumbles back and falls to his knees, then gets up. Astrid darts from behind the wall, her skirt swishing, and sends ice at him, running behind me. Stoick simply clenches his fists, making his muscles bulge, and the sheet of magic ice shatters. Astrid skids to a halt behind me and swears. "Damnit."

The rest of the Clan flies up and surrounds Stoick, about 15 feet in the air. We were in a star shape. My team already knows what I want them to do. "_Pressing Twister!" _Ruffnut bellowed, and a high powered wind comes from his hand, making Stoick crouch down on the ground.

"_Fire Arrow!" _Snotlout says, shooting a glowing hot arrow from his hand. It goes into Stoick's gun hand.

"_Quicksand Trap!" _Tuffnut says, making the ground beneath Stoick muddy. He slowly begins to sink into it. "You'd best not struggle," Tuffnut suggests, placing her hands on her hips and making her dress move.

Stoick tosses his gun to his other hand and attempts to shoot Tuffnut out of the sky. "_Ice Spear!" _Astrid shouts, and thrusts her hand forward, making a diamond shaped shard of ice go towards the gun and pin it to the marshy ground. It sinks into the mud.

Taking my chance, I dive towards my father and hold my two fingers forward, pressing them to Stoick's chest. Before I can fire off a spell, Stoick grips my arms, putting enough pressure on them to make me cry out in pain.

Mom chooses that moment to slow down time.

It comes as a shock to the others, having never experienced the sensation. Everything becomes slowed down, and the others float in mid air. I surge forward, bringing my foot forward, and connects the sole of my clean Converse with my father's chest, sending an electric charge through Stoick's chest that paralyzes him temporarily. Floating in frozen time space, with my legs floating upwards, I then tilt myself forward and wrap my hands around my father's horns, and concentrate my powers, putting up a light blue psychic bubble around us…

…and breaking the control that the School had implemented on him.


End file.
